Stock futures struggle to rebound from equity bloodbath
Tuesday marked the first back-to-back 3 percent losses for the S&P 500 since the summer of 2015
U.S. equity futures are pointing to a small gain on Wednesday, following two days of massive selling as fears spread that the growing coronavirus outbreak will put the brakes on the global economy.
The major futures indexes are indicating a gain of decline of 0.2 percent.
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The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 879 points, for a two-day loss of 1,911 points. Travel-related stocks took another drubbing, bringing the two-day loss for American Airlines to 16.9 percent. The large publicly traded cruise operators have also suffered double-digit losses.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I:DJI | DOW JONES AVERAGES | 44782 | -128.65 | -0.29% |
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 6047.15 | +14.77 | +0.24% |
| I:COMP | NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX | 19403.947849 | +185.78 | +0.97% |
The S&P 500 has lost 7.6 percent in the last four days since hitting a record high last Wednesday. That's the benchmark index's worst such stretch since the end of 2018, resulting in $2.14 trillion in losses, according to S&P Global.
Tuesday also marked the first back-to-back 3 percent losses for the index since the summer of 2015.The major indexes have erased gains for the year.
The latest wave of selling came as more companies, including United Airlines and Mastercard, warned the outbreak will hurt their finances, and more cases were reported in Europe and the Middle East, far from the epicenter in China.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAL | AMERICAN AIRLINES GROUP INC. | 14.61 | +0.09 | +0.62% |
| UAL | UNITED AIRLINES HOLDINGS INC. | 97.44 | +0.61 | +0.63% |
| MA | MASTERCARD INC. | 531.36 | -1.58 | -0.30% |
| JPM | JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. | 246.25 | -3.47 | -1.39% |
| BAC | BANK OF AMERICA CORP. | 47.04 | -0.47 | -0.99% |
Meanwhile, U.S. health officials called on Americans to be prepared for the disease to spread in the United States, where there are currently just a few dozen cases.
CDC WARNS AMERICANS TO START PREPARING FOR CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK IN US
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei declined 0.8 percent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng declined 0.7 percent and China's Shanghai Composite fell 0.8 percent.
In Europe, London's FTSE fell 0.6 percent, Germany's DAX dropped 1.2 percent and France's CAC was off 0.8 percent.
Bond prices continued rising. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell as low as 1.31 percent, a record, according to TradeWeb, before recovering somewhat to 1.35 percent in the late afternoon. The yield is down from 1.37 percent late Monday and far below the 1.90 percent it stood at in early 2020.
The lower bond yields, which force interest rates lower on mortgages and other loans, weighed on banks. JPMorgan Chase slid 4.5 percent and Bank of America fell 5 percent.
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The viral outbreak that originated in China has now infected more than 80,000 people globally, with more cases being reported in Europe and the Middle East. The majority of cases and deaths remain centered in China, but the rapid spread to other parts of the world has spooked markets and raised fears that it will hurt the global economy.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.